Whether you’re putting together a garlic-studded pot roast or stewing a batch of hearty white chicken and navy bean chili, few side dishes are better than cornbread. Nutty, sweet, and fluffy enough to soak up plenty of honey butter, cornbread is the perfect counterpoint to deeply savory and spicy dishes, curbing their intensity just enough to make all the flavors sing. Though some argue that the best cornbread comes from a cast iron skillet, we theorize that the slow cooker version may give your cast iron a run for its money.
As the name suggests, slow cookers are designed to cook food for an extended time with low heat, which helps flavors marry and often produces tender vegetables and succulent meats. When it comes to baking, these appliances are capable of creating moist, almost velvety results. In fact, using a slow cooker is one of several ways to take boxed cornbread to the next level. When set up correctly, crockpots encourage steam production, which helps give your cornbread a beautiful crumb and enhances its overall flavor.
Though making cornbread in your crockpot is fairly straightforward, there’s still a few precautions you need to take, such as lining your appliance with nonstick spray or parchment paper. You should also slide a clean tea towel between the lid and the slow cooker to absorb excess steam and help seal in the heat. This balances the moisture levels, preventing your cornbread from being either soggy or dry, while also ensuring it cooks evenly.
Variations and tips on crock pot cornbread
One of the best things about cornbread is its versatility. It’s very easy to elevate it with sweet, savory, or spicy flavors using everything from blueberries and marmalade to creamed corn, classic Southern pimento cheese, or jalapeños. You can even combine flavor profiles to create something entirely new — think peaches and barbecue seasoning, cheddar and sriracha, or even sausage and roasted red peppers for a breakfast-like twist.
While most of these variations will cook beautifully in a slow cooker, it’s important to take into account any extra moisture, fat, or sugar you’re adding to your recipe. Considering these factors will help you compensate for any potential cooking disasters. For instance, creamed corn introduces quite a lot of additional moisture into your recipe, so you may need to bake it longer. Doing a toothpick test at the 2-hour mark should help you decide how much more time it needs. A very loose center may need up to an hour, while a squishy-but-set center may only need 30 minutes.
If you’re adding anything with lots of sugar, such as fruit, lining your crockpot insert with parchment paper is a must. The paper will help prevent scorching by keeping errant juices from making direct contact with the hot cooking surface. This same hack works well for oily add-ins like rendered sausage or crumbled bacon. Other precautions, such as draining oils and patting add-ins dry, will also help your cornbread to cook more evenly in the slow cooker.
